Here's What It's Actually Like to Take Eau Rouge Flat Out

Spa-Francorchamps' Eau Rouge is perhaps the most famous corner in all of motorsport. It's an incredibly fast right-exit uphill chicane with crash barriers at either side and little room for error. It's led countless drivers into spins and crashes thanks to its deceiving nature and sheer speed. Lately, high-downforce cars have made it possible to take Eau Rouge flat out—but what does that actually feel like for the driver?

Jethro Bovingdon of DriveTribe wanted to see what the infamous corner is like at full throttle. Formula One and WEC cars have been sweeping through Eau Rouge without so much as a lift for years now thanks to advancements in aerodynamics, so Bovingdon got a hold of a Radical SR3 RSX open-cockpit track car to recreate the sensation.

The purpose-built race car weighs almost nothing and uses a Suzuki Hayabusa-based 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine making 260 horsepower at 10,500 rpm. Most importantly, it has the downforce necessary to allow our guy Jethro to contemplate this flat-out feat.

Bovingdon hits the track and realizes quickly that, while it's possible to take Eau Rouge flat-out, it's not for the faint-hearted. He eventually nails it though, and it's a sight to behold. Watch for yourself as he manages to tackle the most challenging corner in motorsport history.

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